Nat Chediak
"Born in Havana, Nat Chediak is the founder/director of the Miami Film Festival, where, for many years, some of the finest names in jazz have performed after hours. He has written on the subject for "Mas" magazine and for Miami's Spanish language daily, "El Nuevo Herald." He was the host of "Sazón," the first Latin jazz program on South Florida commercial radio. He is the producer/director of "Aquí Estamos," a one hour documentary on the history of Cuban music. Nat says, "My personal taste runs the full spectrum from Cuban music to jazz. For the sake of brevity, I am focusing on the latter, assuming that you've already stocked your basic Arsenio, Barroso, Beny, Cachao, Celia, Chappottin y Cuní, Fajardo, Pérez Prado, Miguelito Valdés, Conjunto Casino, Sonora Matancera, Orquestas Aragón, Casino de la Playa, Riverside; and are ready for that fateful leap into the void.""

Here are some reviews by Nat Chediak

Bebo Valdes, Bebo Rides Again!
CD (Universal/Pimienta 360615),Released 1995;Re-Issued 2004;
"The legendary bandleader, composer, pianist and father of Irakere's Chucho comes out of retirement for a tasty jam session in Frankfurt. Maria Teresa Vera's 'Veinte Años' (with Juan Pablo Torres on trombone) and Lecuona's 'Comparsa' (with Carlos Emilio on guitar and Patato on bongos) are standouts. 'Oleaje' the final selection on the album, is a moving farewell from an Old Master in winter. "
Category: Dance Traditions => Big Band Mambo Jazz=> Cuba
ORDER TL-14203.10 CD
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Cal Tjader, Heat Wave (with Carmen McRae)
CD (Concord 4189),
"The toughest call of all, because Tjader's early sides with the late, great Chombo Silva on tenor sax are classics. However, many outstanding American vocalists have attempted Latin albums, none as successful as this. The title track, 'All in Love is Fair,' 'Bésame Mucho' and 'Evil Ways' are sizzlers. And, oh yes, Cal is in fine form as well."
Category: Latin Jazz => Latin Jazz
ORDER TL-14355.10 CD
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Carlos 'Patato' Valdes, Masterpiece
CD (Universal/Pimienta 360630),Released 1993;Re-Issued 2004;
"A posthumous gift from Argentine piano legend Jorge Dalto to his beloved colleague, the irrepressible Cuban conguero Patato Valdés. Whether it be playing for Mario Bauzá or Herbie Mann, doing the 'pingüino' with Conjunto Casino or teaching Brigitte Bardot the mambo, Patato has earned his place in music history threefold. This happy-go-lucky recording from the mid-eighties may not live up to its title. But Patato is in good company, and the CD is not devoid of his sense of humor."
Category: Latin Jazz => Latin Jazz
ORDER TL-12878.10 CD
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Chico O'Farrill, Chico O'Farrill & His Afro-Cuban Jazz Orchestra: Pure Emotion
CD (Milestone 9239),Released 1995;
"If Machito came to jazz through Cuban music, with Chico it was the other way around. The paternity of Afro-Cuban jazz has been hotly debated of late, but there's little doubt that it was maestro O'Farrill who first dressed it up in black tie and tails. Here's a deluxe sampler of his broad musical palette. It has Grammy written all over it."
Category: Dance Traditions => Big Band Mambo Jazz=> Cuba
ORDER TL-14309.10 CD
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David Sanchez, The Departure
CD (Columbia 86636),Released 1994;
"The most exciting debut album by a saxophonist since Paquito D'Rivera's "Blowin'" over ten years ago. Purists could quibble that the Coltrane influence is overriding, but there are fates much worse than that for a virtuoso."
Category: Latin Jazz => Latin Jazz
ORDER TL-13253.10 CD
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Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Mi Gran Pasion
CD (Universal/Pimienta 360613),Released 1991;Re-Issued 2004;
"I'm not a fan of this latter-day Keith Jarrett. But let this record show that the flashy piano virtuoso can come up with the gold if he digs deep enough. A charter member of one of danzon's first families offers a music history lesson from the vantage point of that durable Cuban genre. Irreverent, deeply moving and insightful; it gives education a good name. Sadly, save for the rare introspection, it's been mostly show-and-tell from Gonzalo after this."
Category: Latin Jazz => Latin Jazz=> Cuba
ORDER TL-10246.10 CD
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Hilton Ruiz, Heroes
CD (Telarc 83338),Released 1994;
"With piano man Hilton, it's a toss-up between his bluesy RCA barnburners and this, one of the most generous CDs ever made. It's a tribute to some of his musical idols, performed in the company of exceptionally gifted colleagues (Patato, Mañenguito, Berrios, Berroa, Puente, Joe and Andy Gonzalez, Charlie Sepulveda and Steve Turre on a smoky t-bone with plunger). Much of jazz is about sharing, and it sounds like this."
Category: Latin Jazz => Latin Jazz
ORDER TL-13185.10 CD
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Jane Bunnett, Spirits Of Havana
CD (Universal/Pimienta 160526),Released 1992;
"When roots are properly integrated into jazz, anything goes. One of the finest jazz albums recorded in Cuba in the past decade was made by Canadian reedslady Jane Bunnet. 'G.M.S.' and 'Yo Siempre Oddara' echo Cachao's seminal jam sessions. I'll listen to Merceditas Valdés sing the phone book any day of the week."
Category: Latin Jazz => Afro-Cuban Jazz=> Cuba
ORDER TL-11941.10 CD
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Jerry Gonzalez, Moliendo Cafe - Jerry Gonzalez & Fort Apache Band
CD (Sunnyside 1061),Released 1992;
"You'd swear this man's heart beats to 6/8. Jerry Gonzalez is Miles Davis reincarnated as a rumbero. And his Fort Apache Band has been the vanguard of Latin jazz for the past decade. Catch the cool fire of "Verdad Amarga" and "Corcovado.” Moliendo Cafe is possessed of such langorous cadence that, if you listen carefully, you can actually hear the beans grinding."
Category: Latin Jazz => Latin Jazz
ORDER TL-12067.10 CD
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Jesus "Chucho" Valdes, Lucumi: Piano Solo
CD (Universal/Pimienta 360638),Released 1988;Re-Issued 2004;
"One of the most inspired recordings of the eighties. You don't need tumbadoras--or a band for that matter--to make Afro-Cuban jazz. For Chucho, a grand piano will do nicely. Warning: prolonged exposure to this CD can induce a state of euphoria."
Category: Latin Jazz => Afro-Cuban Jazz=> Cuba
ORDER TL-10266.10 CD
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Jesus "Chucho" Valdes, Lucumi: Piano Solo
CD (Messidor 15976),Released 1988;Re-Issued 2004;
"One of the most inspired recordings of the eighties. You don't need tumbadoras--or a band for that matter--to make Afro-Cuban jazz. For Chucho, a grand piano will do nicely. Warning: prolonged exposure to this CD can induce a state of euphoria."
Category: Latin Jazz => Afro-Cuban Jazz=> Cuba
ORDER TL-22709.10 CD
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Michel Camilo, One More Once
CD (Columbia/Sony 66204),Re-Issued 1994;
"Dominican-born, New York-based Michel Camilo is such an exuberant pianist that, normally, he makes his trio sound like a 20-piece orchestra. In this greatest hits selection revisited in big band format, you can actually listen to what you've always imagined."
Category: Latin Jazz => Latin Jazz
ORDER TL-13536.10 CD
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Ray Barretto, Hot Hands: Ancestral Messages & Taboo 2 -CD Set
CD (Concord Picante 2177),Released 1993;Re-Issued 2003;
"He's travelled the length and width of popular music and now he's back to where he once belonged. I've heard Barretto say that there's no such thing as an old salsero. This record is proof positive that there's no such thing as an old conguero."
Category: Latin Jazz => Latin Jazz
ORDER TL-20134.10 CD
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